Limiting Reactant - GCSE Chemistry Definition

The limiting reactant in a chemical reaction is the substance that is completely used up first, stopping the reaction from continuing. Imagine making sandwiches: if you have 10 slices of bread and only 3 slices of cheese, you'll run out of cheese before you use all the bread. Here, cheese is the limiting ingredient, just like the limiting reactant in a chemical reaction. It determines how much product can be made, and once it is used up, no more product can be formed. Identifying the reactant that is limiting is essential for determining the quantity of products that will be produced in a reaction.